Scaling storage capability for subscriber data across multiple devices and device types in a mobile data network

ABSTRACT

A mobile data network supports making subscriber data addressable as devices in a mobile data network. Each data chunk is assigned a device address in the mobile data network. The data chunk can then be addressed as a device in the mobile data network. Data chunks corresponding to a subscriber are distributed across multiple devices in the mobile data network, which may include subscriber devices, network components in the mobile data network, and specialized devices provided by storage providers. A subscriber&#39;s historical data usage is monitored and logged, and may be used to predictively move the subscriber&#39;s data when needed to improve the subscriber&#39;s access to the data.

BACKGROUND

1. Technical Field

This disclosure generally relates to mobile data networks, and morespecifically relates to scaling storage capability for subscriber dataacross multiple devices and device types in a mobile data network.

2. Background Art

Mobile phones have evolved into “smart phones” that allow a subscribernot only to make a call, but also to access data, such as e-mails, theinternet, etc. Mobile phone networks have evolved as well to provide thedata services that new mobile devices require. For example, 3G and 4Gnetworks cover most of the United States, and allow subscribershigh-speed wireless data access on their mobile devices. In addition,phones are not the only devices that can access mobile data networks.Many mobile phone companies provide equipment and services that allow asubscriber to plug a mobile access card into a Universal Serial Bus(USB) port on a laptop computer, and provide wireless internet to thelaptop computer through the mobile data network. In addition, some newermobile phones allow the mobile phone to function as a wireless hotspot,which supports connecting several laptop computers or other wirelessdevices to the mobile phone, which in turn provides data services viathe mobile data network. As time marches on, the amount of data servedon mobile data networks will continue to rise exponentially.

Most data transfers in a mobile data network are initiated by asubscriber. One way for a subscriber to initiate a data transfer is tosend an e-mail, or to invoke a web page. There have been some attemptsat making data transfers across mobile devices data-centric. One form ofdata-centric communication uses a publish-subscribe model, which allowssubscribers to sign up for data. When a data source publishes data, thedata is sent to all subscribers who have signed up for the data. Theadvantage of this type of data-centric communication is the data can beexchanged without the publisher knowing anything about the subscribers(other than where to deliver the data) and without the subscribersknowing anything about the publisher (other than how to sign up for thedata). Instead both publishers and subscribers focus on what the data isas inscribed in the definition of the data.

Internet-based services have arisen that allow a user to store a largeamount of the user's data in the cloud. Cloud-based services takeadvantage of storage and processing capacity that is both readilyavailable and easily expandable in the cloud. While these Internet-basedservices can be used by subscribers of a mobile data network, theseservices are cloud-based and are not provided within a mobile datanetwork. Thus, the problem of storing subscriber data in a mobile datanetwork remains largely unsolved. Data-centric communication in mobiledata networks has not caught on due to the lack of known mapping betweensubscribers and data, due to a lack of scalable storage capabilityacross the mobile data network, and due to the lack of service withcontinuous infrastructure connectivity. While known mobile data networkscan be used as a conduit for accessing cloud-based storage forsubscribers, known mobile data networks do not offer support for storingsubscriber data in the mobile data network.

BRIEF SUMMARY

A mobile data network supports making subscriber data addressable asdevices in a mobile data network. Each data chunk is assigned a deviceaddress in the mobile data network. The data chunk can then be addressedas a device in the mobile data network. Data chunks corresponding to asubscriber are distributed across multiple devices in the mobile datanetwork, which may include subscriber devices, network components in themobile data network, and specialized devices provided by storageproviders. A subscriber's historical data usage is monitored and logged,and may be used to predictively move the subscriber's data when neededto improve the subscriber's access to the data.

The foregoing and other features and advantages will be apparent fromthe following more particular description, as illustrated in theaccompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWING(S)

The disclosure will be described in conjunction with the appendeddrawings, where like designations denote like elements, and:

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a data chunk that is addressable as adevice in a mobile data network;

FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a method for making a data chunk addressableas a device in a mobile data network;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a prior art mobile data network;

FIG. 4 is a diagram showing information that is included in prior artHome Location Register (HLR) entries;

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing configuration for a known MSISDN;

FIG. 6 is a diagram showing how a known MSISDN can have multiplesub-addresses;

FIG. 7 is a flow diagram of a method for making a data chunk addressableas a device in a known mobile data network;

FIG. 8 is a flow diagram of a method for receiving data from a datachunk that is addressable as a device in a mobile data network;

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a method for receiving data from a datachunk that is addressable as a device in a prior art mobile datanetwork;

FIG. 10 is a block diagram of a mobile data network that includes asubscriber data mechanism that tracks, transfers and manages subscriberdata in a mobile data network that is addressable as a device;

FIG. 11 is a flow diagram of a method for the subscriber data mechanismin FIG. 10 to make a data chunk addressable as a device in the mobiledata network;

FIG. 12 is a flow diagram of a method for a device in a mobile datanetwork to request data that is addressable as a device;

FIG. 13 is a diagram that shows examples of data that could be stored inthe data chunk status field in FIG. 1;

FIG. 14 is a table showing one suitable way for the subscriber datatracking mechanism in FIG. 10 to keep track of subscriber data in amobile data network;

FIG. 15 is a block diagram showing subscriber data stored acrossmultiple mobile devices;

FIG. 16 is a block diagram showing how subscriber data may be parsedinto different data chunks that are distributed among different devicesin a mobile data network;

FIG. 17 is a table showing different file types for subscriber data thatcould be parsed into multiple data chunks;

FIG. 18 is a flow diagram of a method for distributing subscriber datain a mobile data network;

FIG. 19 is a block diagram showing a subscriber's data can be stored onmany different types of devices that may access the mobile data network;

FIG. 20 is a block diagram of a subscriber data app;

FIG. 21 is a flow diagram of a method for logging historical data use bya subscriber;

FIG. 22 is a flow diagram of a method for using the logged historicaldata use by a subscriber to predictively move the subscriber's data; and

FIG. 23 is a flow diagram of a method that allows a subscriber to pay afee to have the subscriber's data stored in a better location.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

As discussed above in the Background of the Invention section, whileknown mobile data networks can be used as a conduit for accessingcloud-based storage for subscribers, known mobile data networks do notoffer support for storing subscriber data in the mobile data network.The mobile data network disclosed and claimed herein allows storingsubscriber data in a mobile data network distributed across multipledevices and device types in the mobile data network.

A mobile data network supports making subscriber data addressable asdevices in a mobile data network. Each data chunk is assigned a deviceaddress in the mobile data network. The data chunk can then be addressedas a device in the mobile data network. Data chunks corresponding to asubscriber are distributed across multiple devices in the mobile datanetwork, which may include subscriber devices, network components in themobile data network, and specialized devices provided by storageproviders. A subscriber's historical data usage is monitored and logged,and may be used to predictively move the subscriber's data when neededto improve the subscriber's access to the data.

Referring to FIG. 1, a data chunk 110 represents any data that couldexist in a mobile data network. Data chunk 110 is a data structure andincludes no hardware. In one particular case, data chunk 110 representsdata corresponding to a subscriber of the mobile data network. The datachunk 110 includes a device address 120 that makes the data chunkaddressable as a device in the mobile data network. The data chunk mayadditionally include a status 130 that may include one or more pieces ofinformation related to the status of the data chunk, as discussed inmore detail below with reference to FIG. 13. Data chunk 110 alsoincludes a communication mechanism 140. The communication mechanism 140includes a communication interface 150 and communication logic 160. Thecommunication interface 150 is used by a device in the mobile datanetwork to request the data stored in the data chunk 110 using thedevice address 120. The communication logic 160 determines when and howthe data chunk 110 delivers its data when a request for the data isreceived on the communication interface 150. The data portion 170 issubscriber data stored in the data chunk. When a device in the mobiledata network needs to access the data portion 170 in data chunk 110, itsends a request to the communication interface 150 by using the deviceaddress 120, and in response, the data chunk 110 delivers the dataportion 170 via the communication interface 150 according to thecommunication logic 160.

FIG. 2 shows a method 200 for making a data chunk for a subscriberaddressable in a known mobile data network, such as a 3G or 4G network.A device address corresponding to the subscriber is written as thedevice address of the data chunk (step 210). The device address of thedata chunk is then written to the Home Location Register (HLR) entry forthe subscriber (step 220). The HLR is well-known in 3G and 4G networks.By strategically using device addresses compatible with existing 3G and4G networks, and recording the data chunk as a subscriber device in theHLR, a first implementation can use existing infrastructure in anexisting 3G or 4G mobile data network to make the data chunk addressableas a device so the data can be retrieved when needed by a device in themobile data network.

A prior art mobile data network 300 is shown in FIG. 3. User equipment310, such as a smart phone, communicates with a tower 320, whichcommunicates with a basestation 330. User equipment 310 can include anysuitable device capable of communicating with tower 320. The basestation330 is coupled to one or more components in the mobile data network. Forthe sake of illustration and simplicity, the portion of the network thatcommunicates with the basestation 330 is shown in FIG. 3 as network 340,and can include any suitable number and type of components that exist inprior art mobile data networks. The network 340 includes a Home LocationRegister 350 and a Visitor Location Register 360. The Home LocationRegister 350 contains information regarding subscribers. The VisitorLocation Register 360 contains information retrieved from a subscriber'sHome Location Register 350 when the subscriber is outside his or herhome network. The function of known Home Location Registers and VisitorLocation Registers is well-known in the art, and therefore is notdiscussed in detail here.

Details of information that is stored in a Home Location Register (HLR)350 are shown in FIG. 4. An entry 410 in the HLR for a subscriber caninclude a Subscriber ID, Location, Services, Settings and Otherinformation, as shown in FIG. 4. The Subscriber ID typically includes anInternational Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI) and one or more MobileStation International Subscriber Directory Number (MSISDNs). The IMSI istypically used as a key in the HLR while the MSISDN is the numbernormally dialed to connect a call to a mobile phone. An IMSI for adevice does not change, while there may be multiple MSISDNs associatedwith an IMSI.

As shown in FIG. 5, an MSISDN typically includes a Country Code, aNational Destination Code, and a Subscriber Number. A feature of knownMSISDNs that allows implementing data chunks addressable as devices isthat an MSISDN may have a sub-address, as shown in FIG. 6. A sub-addresscan be up to twenty octets. This allows sub-addresses of an MSISDN to beused to address the subscriber's data chunks. Thus, if a subscriber hasa smart phone and also has a tablet computer that both use the samesubscription to the mobile data network, the sub-address could be usedto differentiate between these two physical devices. By making dataaddressable as a device, the known methods for storing deviceinformation for a subscriber may be used to store information for datachunks for the subscriber.

Referring to FIG. 7, a method 700 is preferably performed to make a datachunk for a subscriber addressable as a device in a mobile data network.The HLR entry for the subscriber is read (step 710). The next unusedMSISDN sub-address for the subscriber is determined (step 720). ThisMSISDN with the next unused sub-address is then written as the deviceaddress for the data chunk (step 730). Referring again to FIG. 1, step730 in FIG. 7 writes the MSISDN with the next unused sub-address to thedevice address 120 for data chunk 110. The MSISDN with the next unusedsub-address that was written to the data chunk is then written to thesubscriber's entry in the HLR (step 740). Writing the MSISDN andsub-address to the subscriber's entry in the HLR in step 740 effectivelyregisters the data chunk as belonging to the subscriber, along with thedevice address needed to access the data chunk. While steps 720, 730 and740 refer to the next unused MSISDN sub-address for the subscriber, anyunused MSISDN sub-address could be used.

FIG. 8 shows a method 800 for retrieving data from a data chunk that isaddressable as a device. The data is requested from the data chunk usingthe device address of the data chunk (step 810). In response, the datachunk sends the data to the requester (step 820). There are numerousways to implement method 800 in a mobile data network.

One possible implementation for method 800 in FIG. 8 for an existingmobile data network, such as a 3G or 4G network, is shown as method 900in FIG. 9. The requesting device sends a text message to the datachunk's device address (step 910). In response to the text message, thedata chunk sends its data to the requesting device via one or more textmessages (step 920). In one particular implementation, the data could bedivided up into multiple chunks that can then be sent via sequentialtext messages, which could then be reassembled into the larger dataportion by the device receiving the text messages. However, chopping thedata into multiple portions that can be sent via text is not the onlyway to retrieve the data. With the ability to text photographs and otherlarge files as attachments to a text message, the data chunk couldsimply send a text message with an attachment that includes the entiredata portion of the data chunk. By making a data chunk addressable as adevice, then sending a text message to the device to retrieve the data,the data chunks addressable as a device can be implemented withinexisting infrastructure in a mobile data network without any changes tohardware or software in the mobile data network.

Using existing support for text messages in an existing mobile datanetwork is a low-cost method of implementing the data chunks that areaddressable as devices, but may not provide the desired function orperformance. As a result, an alternative implementation of a mobile datanetwork 1000 shown in FIG. 10 supports data chunks that are addressableas devices. The user equipment 1010 preferably includes an app 1012 thatallows communicating between the user equipment 1010 and thesubscriber's data chunks that are addressable as devices. The userequipment 1010 communicates with a tower 320, which communicates with abasestation 330, which communicates with one or more network components1020. Note that 1020 in FIG. 10 represents one or multiple networkcomponents. Thus, the features shown as part of the network components1020 in FIG. 10 could exist in different components in the mobile datanetwork 1000. For example, the subscriber database 1030 could exist in afirst network component, the subscriber data mechanism 1040 could existin a second network component, and the network storage 1080 could existin a third network component. FIG. 10 is simplified to show differentfunctions that could be implemented in different network components in amobile data network.

The subscriber database 1030 resides in one of the network components1020. The subscriber database 1030 includes subscriber information 1032that specifies which physical devices 1034 are registered to asubscriber. Because the data chunk disclosed herein includes a deviceaddress, the physical devices 1034 preferably specify addresses ofactual physical devices and additionally specify device addresses ofdata chunks owned by the subscriber that are addressable as devices.

A subscriber data mechanism 1040 resides in one of the networkcomponents 1020. Subscriber data mechanism 1040 preferably includes asubscriber data tracking mechanism 1050, a subscriber data transfermechanism 1060, and a subscriber data management mechanism 1070. Thesubscriber data tracking mechanism 1050 tracks where subscriber datachunks are stored. The subscriber data transfer mechanism 1060 transfersdata in the mobile data network when needed. The subscriber datamanagement mechanism 1070 manages subscriber data in the mobile datanetwork. Network storage 1080 also resides in one of the networkcomponents 1020. Network storage 1080 may include one or more datachunks 110.

Referring to FIG. 11, a method 1100 determines an unused device addressfor a subscriber (step 1110). The unused device address is written asthe device address for a data chunk (step 1120). The device address forthe data chunk is then written to the data tracking mechanism (step1130), such as data tracking mechanism 1050 shown in FIG. 10. Method1100 illustrates the steps in assigning a device address to a data chunkand registering the device address of the data chunk with the datatracking mechanism, which can then keep track of the data chunk. Becausethe data chunk is addressable as a device, the network infrastructure inthe mobile data network that allows registering devices to a subscriberwill inherently support registering data chunks to a subscriber.

A method 1200 in FIG. 12 illustrates how data is retrieved from a datachunk. A requesting device sends a request for data to the data chunk'sdevice address (step 1210). In response to the request in step 1210, thedata chunk sends its data portion to the requesting device (step 1220).

Referring to FIG. 13, data chunk status 130 from FIG. 1 is shown toinclude several fields, which may include a key, a description, anowner, whether the data chunk is copied or not, users who requested thedata chunk, and a time to live (TTL). Of course, other fields not shownin FIG. 13 could be included in the data chunk status 130. The “key”field provides a unique identifier that supports querying the data chunkstatus 130. The “Description” field includes a description of the data.Note the description could include multiple fields. One descriptionfield could indicate type of data stored, such as text, e-mail, audio,video, graphic, application, etc. Another description field couldindicate the relationship of the data chunk to a larger whole. Forexample, a description field could indicate that the data chunk is thesixth chunk of nine data chunks of audio data that make up a song.Another description field could indicate a title for the data chunk,such as the title of the song of which the data chunk is part. Anotherdescription field could indicate whether the data portion of the chunkis encrypted or not. Another description field could include validationvalues, such as checksums, that may be used for data transferverification.

The “Owner” field specifies the subscriber or user that owns the datachunk. Note the owner of the data chunk need not necessarily be asubscriber to the mobile data network. For example, the mobile datanetwork may have an agreement with a competitor network that allows thesubscribers in the competitor network to store data chunks in the mobiledata network. In this case, the owner could be a user of thecompetitor's network that is not a subscriber of the mobile datanetwork. Specifying the owner of the data allows the data chunk to bemore effectively managed.

The “Copied” field indicates whether the data is original or whether itwas copied. Copied data is sometimes referred to as “forked data”because it exists in two places at once. An example of copied data is aweb page downloaded from a web site. The data at the original website isnot altered, and any data downloaded from a web site is necessarily acopy of the web page information residing on the server of the web pageinformation. Knowing whether a data chunk is original or copied allowsthe data chunk to be more effectively managed.

The “Requested By” field indicates subscribers or users who haverequested the data chunk. The “TTL” field can be used to indicate a timeto live for the data chunk, such as an expiration date and time, anumber of uses, or any other suitable way to specify when the data chunkshould be retained or when the data chunk can be deleted, including anyspecific threshold, criteria, algorithm or heuristic.

A simple example will illustrate. Let's assume the data chunk is part ofa web page that has been proactively downloaded to the mobile datanetwork in anticipation of the subscriber needing the information. Forexample, let's assume the subscriber accesses the cnn.com website eachmorning around 7:00 AM, and is finished reading the news by 7:30 AM. Thesubscriber data management mechanism 1070 in FIG. 10 could proactivelydownload the home page from cnn.com at 6:45 AM each morning so theinformation is readily available to the subscriber. Let's assume thehome page is contained in a single data chunk. The data chunk status 130shown in FIG. 13 for this example would include a key, a description ofthe date (web page at cnn.com), the owner of the data (subscriber X),that the data is copied data, that the data was requested by subscriberX, and has a TTL of 7:45 AM so the web page can be discarded after thenormal time when the subscriber will no longer need it. In anotherexample, a subscriber's data chunk may be made available to othersubscribers or users. In this case, the TTL could be dynamically setaccording to the way the data is accessed. For example, if a data chunkthat includes news is requested by other users, the TTL value could beincreased, and the TTL could then decrease once there are no moreaccesses to the data chunk. This scenario dynamically adjusts the TTLfor a data chunk to account for how the data chunk is accessed. Once thedata chunk is no longer needed, the TTL will decrease to zero, and thedata chunk could then be discarded.

The subscriber data tracking mechanism 1060 in FIG. 10 preferably keepstrack of subscriber data. One suitable way for the subscriber datatracking mechanism 1060 to track subscriber data uses a subscriber datatracking table 1400 shown in FIG. 14. The tracking table 1400 includesmultiple entries that each specifies owner, package, sub-package, andlocation as shown in FIG. 14. Thus, entry 1410 specifies that subscriberA owns the data chunk, that the data chunk is sub-package 0001 ofpackage 1234, and the data is stored in location A1, which couldrepresent a location on a physical device used by subscriber A. Entry1420 specifies that subscriber A owns the data chunk, that the datachunk is sub-package 0002 of package 1234, and the data is stored inlocation A2. Entry 1430 specifies that subscriber A owns the data chunk,that the data chunk is sub-package 0003 of package 1234, and the data isstored in location B1. This could mean that data chunks owned bysubscriber A could be stored on a physical device from subscriber B.Entry 1440 specifies that subscriber A owns the data chunk, that thedata chunk is sub-package 0004 of package 1234, and the data is storedin location C5. This could mean that data chunks owned by subscriber Acould be stored on a physical device from subscriber C. Thus, the firstfour entries 1410, 1420, 1430 and 1440 indicate that four chunks thatmake up package 1234 belong to subscriber A, with two of the chunksstored on physical devices belonging to A, one of the chunks stored on aphysical device belonging to subscriber B, and one of the chunks storedon a physical device belonging to subscriber C. Similarly, entries 1450and 1460 show two data chunks owned by subscriber B that are stored onB's and C's devices, and entries 1470, 1480 and 1490 show three datachunks owned by subscriber C that are stored in A's, B's and C'sdevices. The subscriber data tracking table 1400 is one suitable toolthat could be used by the subscriber data tracking mechanism 1050 inFIG. 10 for keeping track of what data is stored where. In addition, thesubscriber data tracking table 1400 could be written to each mobiledevice that includes any of the sub-packages listed in the trackingtable. Thus, for the specific example in FIG. 14, the subscriber datatracking table 1400 could be copied to the mobile devices for owner A,owner B, and owner C. In addition, the data tracking table 1400 couldreside in network storage in the mobile data network that is not part ofany mobile device used by any subscriber of the mobile data network,such as network storage 1080 shown in FIG. 10.

FIG. 15 shows placement of data on different mobile devices as shown inthe subscriber data tracking table 1400 shown in FIG. 14. Each mobiledevice includes storage for data chunks owned by the user (orsubscriber) of the mobile device, and can additionally include storagefor data chunks owned by other users of other mobile devices. Thus,subscriber A's mobile device 1010A includes storage 1510 for data chunksowned by subscriber A and storage 1520 for data chunks owned by others.In the nomenclature used in this example, the identifier preceding aperiod represents a package name while the identifier following theperiod represents a sub-package name. Thus, 1234.0001 1512 shown insubscriber A's mobile device 1010A denotes sub-package 0001 of package1234. In this specific example, data chunks 1234.0001 1512 and 1234.00021514 are data chunks owned by subscriber A, while data chunk 3456.00031522 is owned by subscriber C, as shown in the subscriber data trackingtable 1400 in FIG. 14. Similarly, subscriber B's mobile device 1010Bincludes storage 1530 for data chunks owned by subscriber B and storage1540 for data chunks owned by others. Data chunk 2345.0001 1532 is ownedby subscriber B, while data chunks 1234.0003 1542 and 3456.0002 1544 areowned by subscribers A and C, respectively. In like manner, subscriberC's mobile device 1010C includes storage 1550 for data chunks owned bysubscriber C and storage 1560 for data chunks owned by others. Datachunk 3456.0001 1552 is owned by subscriber C, while data chunks2345.0002 1562 and 1234.0004 1564 are owned by subscribers B and A,respectively. Note that the subscriber data tracking table 1400 shown inFIG. 14 is preferably written to each of the mobile devices 1010A, 1010Band 1010C shown in FIG. 15. In this manner each mobile device knows fromits own table the location of all data chunks on all three devices.

FIG. 14 shows that Owner A owns a package 1234 that includessub-packages 0001, 0002, 0003 and 0004 that correspond to data chunksA1, A2, B1 and C5 respectively. This data package 1234 is showngraphically in FIG. 16. Subscriber A's data 1610 includes package 12341620, which includes the four individual data chunks 1512, 1514, 1542and 1564. Note that data chunks A1 1512 and A2 1514 are stored in mobiledevice 1010A for subscriber A, data chunk B1 1542 is stored in mobiledevice 1010B for subscriber B, and data chunk C5 1564 is stored inmobile device 1010C for subscriber C, as shown in FIG. 15. FIG. 16represents that a file or package can be parsed into multiple datachunks, and different parts of the data chunks can be stored ondifferent devices in the mobile data network. While the specific examplein FIGS. 14-16 shows subscriber data distributed over three mobiledevices, this is shown by way of example and is not limiting. Anysuitable number of mobile devices can be used. In addition, any suitablenumber of different components in the mobile data network can also beused to hold subscriber data, such as network storage 1080 shown in FIG.10. Thus, the disclosure and claims herein extend to storing subscriberdata across any suitable number and type of mobile devices and acrossany suitable number and type of components in the mobile data network.

Note that the mobile devices can communicate with each other and withthe subscriber data mechanism 1040 in the mobile data network usingdifferent networks. For example, for the embodiment in FIG. 15,subscriber A's mobile device 1010A could communicate with the mobiledata network and with subscriber B's mobile device 1010B and subscriberC's mobile device 1010C via a Wi-Fi connection, while mobile devices1010B and 1010C communicate with subscriber A's mobile device and withthe mobile data network using a data path in the mobile data network.The disclosure and claims herein extend to communicating between mobiledevices, between the mobile data network, and between other devicescoupled to the mobile data network using any suitable network orcombination of networks.

Any type of file may be parsed into multiple data chunks that can thenbe stored on multiple devices in a mobile data network. FIG. 17 showsthat subscriber A's data 1710 could include audio files 1720, videofiles 1730, image files 1740, text files 1750, web pages 1760 and otherfiles 1770. Audio files can be quite large, and parsing an audio fileinto multiple data chunks as disclosed herein would allow different datachunks that make up an audio file to be stored on different devices inthe mobile data network. Video files 1730 can be even significantlylarger than most audio files, so parsing the video files into multipledata chunks allows the different chunks to be stored on differentdevices in the mobile data network. Image files 1740 can also be quitelarge, and would benefit from being parsed into multiple data chunks asdescribed herein. Text files 1750 could also be parsed into multipledata chunks. Web pages 1760 can include text, links, images, audiofiles, video files, etc. So one of the web pages 1760 could be parsedinto multiple data chunks. For example, a web page could have one datachunk for text, other data chunks for graphics, other data chunks forvideo files, etc. Other files 1770 generically represents any other typeof file not otherwise listed in FIG. 17, whether currently known ordeveloped in the future.

Referring to FIG. 18, a method 1800 shows steps that can be performed todistribute data across different devices in a mobile data network.Method 1800 is preferably performed by the subscriber data mechanism1040 shown in FIG. 10. In the alternative, method 1800 could beperformed by an app 1012 on a mobile device 1010. Method 1800 beginswhen data needs to be distributed (step 1810). The data chunks to bedistributed are identified (step 1820). The identification of datachunks in step 1820 can include identifying existing data chunks as wellas generating new data chunks by parsing a file into multiple new datachunks. The data chunks can be part of the same file, or can be part ofdifferent files. The devices to which the identified data chunks will bedistributed are then identified (step 1830). The data chunks are thendistributed to the identified devices (step 1840). The location of thedistributed data chunks is the written to a tracking table in thenetwork (step 1850). The location of the distributed data chunks mayalso be written to each identified device that received data (step1860). Method 1800 is then done.

Let's now review method 1800 to determine how it would work for thespecific example shown in FIGS. 14-16. Referring to FIG. 14, we assumepackage 1234 owned by subscriber A is initially stored on the mobiledevice for subscriber A. In similar fashion, we assume package 2345 isinitially stored on the mobile device for subscriber B, and package 3456is initially stored on the mobile device for subscriber C. We assumethat each mobile device for subscribers A, B and C runs an app 1012 asshown in FIG. 10 that allows the mobile devices to communicate with eachother and share data with each other. We assume for this example thatonce all three apps on all three mobile devices communicate with eachother, a determination is made that data needs to be distributed (step1810). We assume for this example the packages 1234, 2345 and 3456 havenot yet been parsed into sub-packages. So in response to determiningthat data needs to be distributed in step 1810, package 1234 is parsedinto sub-packages 0001, 0002, 0003 and 0004; package 2345 is parsed intosub-packages 0001 and 0002; and package 3456 is parsed into sub-packages0001, 0002 and 0003. For this example we assume each sub-packagecorresponds to a data chunk as described herein. Data chunks to bedistributed are identified (step 1820). For the example in FIG. 14, weassume sub-packages 0003 and 0004 of package 1234 are identified to bedistributed, sub-package 0002 of package 2345 is identified to bedistributed, and sub-packages 0002 and 0003 of package 3456 areidentified to be distributed in step 1820. The devices to which theidentified data chunks will be distributed are then identified (step1830). We assume for the example in FIG. 14 that decisions are made todistribute sub-package 0003 of package 1234 to subscriber B's mobiledevice, to distribute sub-package 0004 of package 1234 to subscriber C'smobile device, to distribute sub-package 0002 of package 2345 tosubscriber C's mobile device, to distribute sub-package 0002 of package3456 to subscriber B's mobile device, and to distribute sub-package 0003of package 3456 to subscriber A's mobile device. The data chunks arethen distributed to the identified devices (step 1840), with the resultshown in FIG. 15. The location of the distributed data chunks is thenwritten to a tracking table in the mobile data network (step 1850). Forexample, the subscriber data tracking table 1400 in FIG. 14 can bewritten to the network storage 1080 shown in FIG. 10. The location ofthe distributed data chunks is also written to each identified devicethat received one or more data chunks (step 1860). For example, thesubscriber data tracking table 1400 in FIG. 14 can be written to eachsubscriber's mobile device. Thus, each mobile device 1010A, 1010B and1010C could include the subscriber data tracking table 1400 shown inFIG. 14.

The specific example in FIGS. 14 and 15 show subscriber data chunksdistributed to mobile devices of multiple subscribers in the mobile datanetwork. Note, however, the data can be distributed to other types ofdevices as well, as illustrated in the embodiment shown in FIG. 19.Subscriber A's smart phone 1910 includes a memory 1920 that includes asubscriber data app 1922 and one or more of subscriber A's data chunks1924. The subscriber data app 1922 can include a subscriber datamechanism similar to 1040 shown in FIG. 10 and discussed in detailabove. In the alternative, the subscriber data app 1922 can includeother features, as described with reference to FIG. 20 below. Thesubscriber data app 1922 thus provides the mechanisms for tracking,transferring and managing the subscriber's data chunks, and forcommunicating with subscriber data apps in other devices.

Subscriber B's smart phone 1912 includes a memory 1930 that includes asubscriber data app 1932 and one or more of subscriber A's data chunks1934. Of course, the memory 1930 could also contain data chunks forSubscriber B or other subscribers, but only the data chunks forsubscriber A are shown in FIG. 19 for the sake of simplifying thedrawing and corresponding description. The subscriber data app 1932could be the same as the subscriber data app 1922 in subscriber A'ssmart phone, or could be different. For example, if subscriber A's smartphone 1910 is an Android phone, and if subscriber B's smart phone 1912is an iPhone, the subscriber data apps 1922 and 1932 will be differentapps designed to run on their respective operating systems, but bothwill support the tracking, transfer and management of data chunksdisclosed herein.

Basestation 1914 is a basestation that is in communication withSubscriber A's smart phone 1910. Note that basestation 1914 in FIG. 19can represent different basestations in different locations in proximityto and in communication with subscriber A's smart phone 1910 assubscriber A's smart phone 1910 moves about. A basestation 1914 issimilar in many respects to the prior art basestation 330 shown in FIGS.3 and 10, with the added capability provided by the subscriber data app1942 and the storage of subscriber data chunks, such as one or moresubscriber A data chunks 1944. The subscriber data app 1942 couldinclude the subscriber data mechanism 1040 shown in FIG. 10 anddescribed in detail above. In the alternative, the subscriber data app1942 can include other features, as described with reference to FIG. 20below. The provider of the mobile data network could provide memory inbasestations as shown at 1914 in FIG. 19 to extend the storagecapability for subscriber data in the mobile data network.

Subscriber C's laptop 1916 includes a memory 1950 that includes asubscriber data app 1952 and one or more of subscriber A's data chunks1954. Subscriber C's laptop 1916 could be coupled to the mobile datanetwork via a wireless modem. In the alternative, subscriber C's laptop1916 could be coupled to the mobile data network via a Wi-Fi connection.The subscriber data app 1952 could be the same as other subscriber dataapps in the mobile data network, such as 1922, 1932, 1942 and 1962. Inthe alternative, the subscriber data app 1952 could be different thanthe other subscriber data apps, as long as it supports the tracking,transfer and management of data chunks disclosed herein. For example, anapplication for a laptop computer is typically different than an app fora smart phone.

A kiosk 1918 is shown in FIG. 19, which represents a device that couldbe owned by the mobile data network or could be owned by a third partysubscriber to the mobile data network. Kiosk 1918 provides memorycapacity for storing subscriber data chunks for a fee. The kiosk 1918includes a memory 1960 that includes a subscriber data app 1962 and oneor more of subscriber A's data chunks 1064. As with the other subscriberdata apps, subscriber data app 1962 could be the same as one or more ofthe other subscriber data apps, or could be different, as long as itsupports the tracking, transfer and management of data chunks disclosedherein. Because the kiosk charges a fee for use of its memory, andbecause subscriber A's data chunks 1064 are stored in the memory 1960 inthe kiosk 1918, this implies subscriber A has previously authorizedpaying the required fee for storing subscriber A's data chunks 1064 inthe memory 1960 of kiosk 1918. Of course, the disclosure and claimsherein extend to storing a subscriber's data in a device such as a kioskthat does not require payment of a fee.

The types of devices shown in FIG. 19 are not limiting, but are shown byway of example. The disclosure and claims herein expressly extend to anysuitable device, whether a network component in the mobile data network,a subscriber device, or a device coupled to the mobile data network thatis provided by a third party.

FIG. 20 shows one suitable embodiment for the subscriber data app 1922shown in FIG. 19. The same or similar configuration could apply to allof the subscriber data apps 1922, 1932, 1942, 1952 and 1962 shown inFIG. 19. Subscriber data app 1922 includes a subscriber data mechanism2040. The subscriber data mechanism 2040 includes a subscriber datatracking mechanism 2050, a subscriber data transfer mechanism 2060, asubscriber data management mechanism 2070, a subscriber historymechanism 2080, and a subscriber data prediction mechanism 2090. Themechanisms 2050, 2060 and 2070 could have similar functions to thecorresponding mechanisms 1050, 1060 and 1070 shown in FIG. 10 anddescribed above. Of course, mechanisms 2050, 2060 and 2070 could havedifferent or additional functions as well. The subscriber historymechanism 2080 monitors data chunks used by the subscriber, and writesthe data chunks used by the subscriber to a historical log 2082. Thesubscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 analyzes the historical log2082 to determine trends in the usage of the data chunks by thesubscriber. Based on an analysis of the historical log 2082, thesubscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 can predict data, a location,and a time when the subscriber may likely need to access the data in thefuture. The predicted data 2092, predicted location 2094, and predictedtime 2096 are shown in FIG. 20. Based on the predicted data 2092,predicted location 2094, and predicted time 2096, the subscriber dataprediction mechanism 2090 can proactively move subscriber data betweendevices in the mobile data network as needed to provide the bestperformance for the subscriber. In particular, the subscriber dataprediction mechanism 2090 moves the predicted data 2092 to the predictedlocation 2094 to be available at the predicted time 2096, wherein thepredicted data comprises at least one of the subscriber's data chunks.

Referring to FIG. 21, a method 2100 is preferably performed by thesubscriber history mechanism 2080 shown in FIG. 20. The data chunks usedby a subscriber are monitored (step 2110). The data chunks used by thesubscriber are written to the historical log (step 2120). Note themonitoring of data chunks in step 2110 and logging of the monitored datain step 2120 can be performed for one subscriber at a time, or could beperformed for multiple subscribers simultaneously. In addition, thehistorical log could contain historical information for a singlesubscriber, or could contain historical information for multiplesubscribers. Method 2100 is then done.

Referring to FIG. 22, a method 2200 is preferably performed by thesubscriber data prediction mechanism 2090. The historical log for asubscriber is read (step 2210). The data in the historical log isanalyzed to determine trends in the subscriber's data usage to determinepredicted data, predicted location, and predicted time (step 2220). Thepredicted data is then moved to the predicted location to be availableat the predicted time (step 2230). In the most preferred implementation,the data is moved before the predicted time so the data is available inthe predicted location at the predicted time. Method 2200 is then done.

A simple example will illustrate the function of the subscriber dataprediction mechanism 2090 shown in FIG. 20. Let's assume a salespersonhas to regularly traverse a large remote region to meet with customers.The salesperson uses mass transit to go from region to region and duringthe transition she wants to look at information about the customer sheis visiting next. Let's assume each time the salesperson makes thistrip, she starts by first visiting customers A and B in location 1,followed by visiting customers C and D in location 2. The subscriberdata prediction mechanism 2080 would identify this pattern from thehistorical log 2082 and ensure that the data for the customer at thenext location is available at the previous location. Thus, as thesalesperson is traveling to location 1 near customers A and B, thesubscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 could download data relatingto customers A, B, C and D to a kiosk at location 1. When thesalesperson arrives in location 1, the data for customers A, B, C and Dcan be downloaded from the kiosk to the salesperson's mobile device. Thesalesperson could change the date relating to customers A and B, whichcould result in the changed data being stored to the kiosk at location1, which can then send the changed data back to the salesperson'scompany database. When the salesperson is done at location 1 and istraveling to location 2, the data for customers C and D will beavailable for the salesperson to review on the salesperson's mobiledevice in transit between location 1 and location 2. As the salespersontravels from location 1 to location 2, the subscriber data predictionmechanism 2090 could delete the data for customers A and B from thesubscriber's mobile device.

In another example, the subscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 candetermine what information the subscriber may need at a point along asubscriber's path when the path and points are predefined, such as stopson a train, even when the subscriber has never ridden the train before.In this case the subscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 would look atthe fact that the user is traveling by train, which has a constrainedpath with defined schedule information. Using this information thesubscriber data prediction mechanism 2090 can move required data to thedifferent stops such that the appropriate pieces of data will be at eachstop when the subscriber arrives. For example, let's assume a subscriberis reading a large document on their phone as they ride the train. Theyare reading at a rate of 3 pages per minute. Let's further assume thetrain will stop at station A, then travel for 10 minutes to station B.When the train is stopped at station A, the subscriber data predictionmechanism 2090 can determine the train will arrive at station B in 10minutes, so the subscriber will need 30 more pages of data available atstation A. As a result, the 30 pages of data is moved to a location atstation A and loaded onto the subscriber's phone when the subscriberarrives at station A. In addition, the subscriber data predictionmechanism 2090 can also use information about the other passengers andload the data needed by the subscriber onto devices of passengersgetting on the train. When the subscriber data prediction mechanism 2090detects a passenger that has data that was previously downloaded ontheir device is getting off the train, the data could be moved to thedevice of another passenger that is still on the train.

In one particular embodiment, some locations that store data could do sofor a fee. For example, the kiosk 1918 in FIG. 19 and the kioskdescribed in the example above could charge a fee for the subscriber tobe able to access the subscriber's data. Referring to FIG. 23, a method2300 determines whether or not to move a subscriber's data chunks to abetter location. When a better location for a fee is not available (step2310=NO), method 2300 is done. When a better location is available for afee (step 2310=YES), the subscriber is prompted to authorize the fee forthe better location (step 2320). When the subscriber does not authorizethe fee (step 2330=NO), method 2300 is done. When the subscriberauthorizes the fee (step 2330=YES), the better location is thenavailable for the storage of the subscriber's data (step 2340). Method2300 is then done. Method 2300 shows how a subscriber can decide to payto have data moved to a better location that improves the performancefor the subscriber.

Note also that data chunks could be copies of data retrieved fromelsewhere. For example, a subscriber may access a web page, which couldcause the web page to be copied to one or more data chunks owned by thesubscriber. In this case, the data chunk owned by the subscriber is acopy, which means the data chunk could be discarded when the web page isno longer needed.

Data chunks are data structures that do not include any hardware. Makingdata chunks addressable as devices makes the data chunks appear astraditional physical devices that include hardware. In this manner datachunks can be addressed as if they are physical devices in the mobiledata network.

A mobile data network supports making subscriber data addressable asdevices in a mobile data network. Each data chunk is assigned a deviceaddress in the mobile data network. The data chunk can then be addressesas a device in the mobile data network. A first implementation allowsaccessing data in existing mobile data networks by sending a textmessage to the device address of the data chunk. When the data chunkreceives a text message, it responds with one or more text messages thatdeliver the data in the data chunk to the sender who sent the textmessage. A second implementation includes a subscriber data mechanism inthe mobile data network that supports tracking, transfer and managementof subscriber data in the mobile data network. Making subscriber dataaddressable as a device simplifies data-centric communication in amobile data network. Data chunks corresponding to a subscriber aredistributed across multiple devices in the mobile data network, whichmay include subscriber devices, network components in the mobile datanetwork, and specialized devices provided by storage providers. Asubscriber's historical data usage is monitored and logged, and may beused to predictively move the subscriber's data when needed to improvethe subscriber's access to the data.

One skilled in the art will appreciate that many variations are possiblewithin the scope of the claims. Thus, while the disclosure isparticularly shown and described above, it will be understood by thoseskilled in the art that these and other changes in form and details maybe made therein without departing from the spirit and scope of theclaims.

The invention claimed is:
 1. A mobile data network comprising: anantenna that communicates with user equipment; at least one basestationcoupled to the antenna that communicates with the user equipment via theantenna; a plurality of data chunks residing in the mobile data network,each data chunk comprising: a device address that makes the data chunkaddressable as a physical device in the mobile data network; a dataportion corresponding to subscriber data for a subscriber; a networkcomponent coupled to the basestation, the network component comprising asubscriber database that includes information relating to physicaldevices used by the subscriber to access the mobile data network,wherein the information relating to physical devices used by thesubscriber comprises the device address of the data chunk; a subscriberdata mechanism residing in a first physical device coupled to the mobiledata network that performs the steps of: identifying a plurality of datachunks that comprise subscriber data; identifying a plurality of devicesin the mobile data network that each can receive at least one of thedata chunks; distributing the plurality of data chunks to the identifiedplurality of devices; monitoring data chunks used by the subscriber;writing the data chunks used by the subscriber to a historical log;analyzing the historical log to determine trends in the usage of thedata chunks by the subscriber to determine predicted data, a predictedlocation, and a predicted time; and moving the predicted data to thepredicted location to be available at the predicted time, wherein thepredicted data comprises at least one of the data chunks.
 2. The mobiledata network of claim 1 wherein the identified plurality of devicescomprises a plurality of mobile devices used by different subscribers ofthe mobile data network.
 3. The mobile data network of claim 1 whereinthe identified plurality of devices comprises network storage in themobile data network.
 4. The mobile data network of claim 1 wherein theidentified plurality of devices comprises storage coupled to the mobiledata network, wherein the storage can be made available to store atleast a portion of the subscriber data for a fee.
 5. The mobile datanetwork of claim 1 wherein each of the plurality of data chunkscomprises a sub-portion of a larger file that comprises the subscriberdata.
 6. The mobile data network of claim 5 wherein each data chunkfurther comprises a status that comprises a key and a description of thedata chunk.
 7. The mobile data network of claim 6 wherein the statusfurther comprises owner of the data chunk.
 8. The mobile data network ofclaim 7 wherein the status further comprises users who requested thedata chunk.
 9. A mobile data network comprising: an antenna thatcommunicates with user equipment; at least one basestation coupled tothe antenna that communicates with the user equipment via the antenna; asubscriber data mechanism residing in a first physical device coupled tothe mobile data network that performs the steps of: identifying aplurality of data chunks that comprise subscriber data; identifying aplurality of physical devices in the mobile data network that each canreceive at least one of the data chunks; distributing the plurality ofdata chunks to the identified plurality of physical devices; monitoringdata chunks used by the subscriber; writing the data chunks used by thesubscriber to a historical log; analyzing the historical log todetermine trends in the usage of the data chunks by the subscriber todetermine predicted data, a predicted location, and a predicted time;and moving the predicted data to the predicted location to be availableat the predicted time, wherein the predicted data comprises at least oneof the data chunks.
 10. The mobile data network of claim 9 wherein theidentified plurality of devices comprises a plurality of mobile devicesused by different subscribers of the mobile data network.
 11. The mobiledata network of claim 9 wherein the identified plurality of devicescomprises network storage in the mobile data network.
 12. The mobiledata network of claim 9 wherein the identified plurality of devicescomprises storage coupled to the mobile data network, wherein thestorage can be made available to store at least a portion of thesubscriber data for a fee.
 13. The mobile data network of claim 9wherein each of the plurality of data chunks comprises a sub-portion ofa larger file that comprises the subscriber data.
 14. The mobile datanetwork of claim 13 wherein each data chunk further comprises a statusthat comprises a key and a description of the data chunk.
 15. The mobiledata network of claim 14 wherein the status further comprises owner ofthe data chunk.
 16. The mobile data network of claim 15 wherein thestatus further comprises users who requested the data chunk.
 17. Themobile data network of claim 9 further comprising: a plurality of datachunks residing in the mobile data network, each data chunk comprising:a device address that makes the data chunk addressable as a physicaldevice in the mobile data network; and a data portion corresponding tosubscriber data for a subscriber.